Battle of Gorah

The battle of Gorah was a battle fought between the armies of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, led by King Baldwin IV of Jerusalem, and the Ayyubid Caliphate, led by Captain Sayf ad-Din, in 1186 on the border of Egypt and Israel. Baldwin's powerful army crushed the smaller Egyptian army, allowing for him to advance further into the Sinai.

Battle
Following King Baldwin IV of Jerusalem's decisive victory at the Battle of Gazza earlier in 1186, the Ayyubid armies in southern Palestine retreated back into the Sinai. King Baldwin decided to press his advantage and take his army of 780 troops to attack Sayf ad-Din's smaller army of 271 Saracens at Gorah (now El Gorah, Egypt, near the Israeli border). The Jerusalemite army was inspired by their king, who gave a speech to them before the battle; he joked about his love for books, saying that they were useful when his men had loose bowels (although he told his men that Tacitus' books had rough pages that were not soft on the "nether regions"). The Jerusalemites proceeded to launch a strong attack uphill, and their Egyptian foes were overwhelmed by superior numbers. The Egyptian army was destroyed, with Sayf ad-Din being slain by spearmen during the fight. Saladin sent emmissaries with money to buy the safe release of the Ayyubid prisoners, and the Ayyubid army's remnants retreated to Lower Egypt.